Cavs
Despite the Cavaliers' back-to-back wins in Cleveland, I still expect Detroit to win the series, mainly because Cleveland has yet to prove to me it can win in Detroit.
That said, it's a good feeling to know the first two games of the series have been totally wiped out.
Forget the first four games. Forget Rasheed Wallace and his guarantees. It's no longer a best of seven, it's a best of three. If the Cavaliers can somehow win game five, the the doubters will be silenced. Then, Detroit has to do what it has not been able to do so far: win in Cleveland.
Yes, I am biased, and yes, I was at a Cavs game a few weeks ago. But having watched a number of playoff games, I don't think there has been a crowd as alive as the one at the Q.
It's a marketing slogan, but I really believe the city is buying into the idea that it is a witness to greatness. Cleveland is 4-1 in the playoffs at home.
The Cavaliers also beat the best team in the league without Larry Hughes. LeBron James was not even at his best last night, but Eric Snow, Damon Jones, Donyell Marshall and Anderson Varejo did what was needed.
Sadly, Zydrunas Ilgauskas has yet to be at his best. Z is nowhere to be found in the last few minutes of games. Varejo is who Mike Brown wants out there, and it's impossible to blame him.